Hope in the fall.

Genesis 3:1-2

Now the serpent was more cunning than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said to the woman, “Has God indeed said, ‘You shall not eat of every tree of the garden’?”  And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat the fruit of the trees of the garden;

The enemy is extremely cunning, very baffling and constantly deceiving anything that is created.  He has enticed and tempted woman from the beginning. The enemy entices and deceives the Lord’s creation including marriage.  He is relentless in trying to tempt us, He is relentless in trying to tempt our spouses. From the beginning the lies of the enemy’s goal is to lead to death (this includes the death of a marriage).  However, in Christ, and when we put our trust in the Lord, we do not have to bite off the temptation of the enemy.  God ‘s desire is for our good so He can provides a way out from the temptations of this world and into His goodness.

Genesis 3:6-7 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves coverings.

Woman was deceived from the enemy from the beginning.  He still tries to deceive.  The enemy also deceived the man.

Genesis 3:14-16 “So the Lord God said to the serpent: “Because you have done this, You are cursed more than all cattle, And more than every beast of the field; On your belly you shall go, And you shall eat dust all the days of your life.  And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.” To the woman He said:“I will greatly multiply your sorrow and your conception; In pain you shall bring forth children;Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule over you.”

Sin is not to be taken lightly, it is a serious matter. God in His kindness sent his Son years later after the fall of Adam and Eve so we could be forgiven and have life in Him. We have to work hard, there is strife in relationships, there is hurt, there is sorrow, and there is pain because of the fall that happened in the Garden of Eden. And because of Jesus we get a second chance when we confess our sins. Christ is faithful to forgive our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness as we repent, turning our beings to Him. This is the first step and a must in being restored first and foremost to Christ and secondly He gives us great hope to be restored to others.